Car was into the shop this week for the motor tick under the CPO warranty.
No questions asked they replaced the lifters and rockers based on my word alone. The repair document says:
Cause:
HVA
0058827
Correction:
Engine ticking at idle when cold.
Replaced lifters and rockers as per PUMA measure 25287832-10.
Relearned Valvetronic limit positions. Cleared Faults.

If anyone's curious or needs them, I can list the FP Numbers for all the parts too. I'm really glad I brought it in and got it looked at because they found an oil leak on a Camshaft sensor! Replaced an "Eccentric Shaft Sensor" under warranty yoo.

I don't know if it's a placebo effect, but the car seems to idle smoother a run better after having her top end cleaned up!

Car was into the shop this week for the motor tick under the CPO warranty.
No questions asked they replaced the lifters and rockers based on my word alone. The repair document says:
Cause:
HVA
0058827
Correction:
Engine ticking at idle when cold.
Replaced lifters and rockers as per PUMA measure 25287832-10.
Relearned Valvetronic limit positions. Cleared Faults.

If anyone's curious or needs them, I can list the FP Numbers for all the parts too. I'm really glad I brought it in and got it looked at because they found an oil leak on a Camshaft sensor! Replaced an "Eccentric Shaft Sensor" under warranty yoo.

I don't know if it's a placebo effect, but the car seems to idle smoother a run better after having her top end cleaned up!

Let's hope that's your last trip for that issue and you don't need the cylinder head replaced.

Honestly, I heard the noise 3 times last winter and haven't heard it again since. "If it ain't broke don't fix it" is what I'm going by. People have complained about this noise becoming an actual issue when EVERY start up it was doing it. That's when I'll worry about it.... (or until my CPO runs out 2/2014) Lol

After having worked a few years as a service advisor for another brand, I'll tell you this much: Never, ever sit on an issue, always be polite, courteous but firm on your requests to have the dealer address an issue. Even if you can't hear it now, even if they can't hear it when the car is in the shop, tell them it's a well known/documented issue and that you're still hearing it intermittently.

As a service advisor, I was instructed by my service manager to try to dismiss as much as possible as being normal. It's a PITA to manage warranty claims, head office is always on your back if your replacement average for certain components are above regional or national average and you know what, just dismissing an issue or a minor issue as being "normal" works with most customers. They'll unfortunately take your word for it and be on their way. Sometimes the issue isn't a particularly grave one and the car will still perform normally for a while (until the warranty runs out and then it's not the dealer's problem anymore). Sometimes it turns into a major issue you have to deal with under warranty and believe you me, some manufacturers give their dealers a hard time to discourage them from passing a repair under warranty to cut on costs.

At the end of the day, they're there to make money and so are the dealerships. The service staff is extremely busy and would rather work on things that generate profit and fixing an issue under warranty will maybe make you break even. Dealers aren't interested in that.

Unfortunately, when things take a turn for the worse, the customer has to foot the bill or has to battle it out against Goliath in court. I never worked for BMW but from what I've been reading in the last few years of owning BMW's on various message boards, they won't hesitate to put a band aid on a gunshot wound just to make the car last through warranty and after that, you're on your own.

It's a lot easier to have an issue taken care of while you're under warranty than out. Just read through the thread and you'll see how quickly the dealers are quoting an $8k head replacement when you bring your car in with a ticking noise while out of warranty. I might have to make a few phone calls, argue with a service advisor or manager, but at the end of the day, I'll be paying my $50 deductible to have the head replaced under warranty. And that's exactly why I paid a bit more for a CPO car.

I have a ticking coming from the engine, but its not very loud. How do I tell the difference in lifter tick and the normal ticking of our engines? If I leave the tick, will this cause a larger problem down the road?

I have a ticking coming from the engine, but its not very loud. How do I tell the difference in lifter tick and the normal ticking of our engines? If I leave the tick, will this cause a larger problem down the road?

I've been putting it off. Has done it like 5 times in a little over 1 year of ownership. Supposedly doesn't affect the car. Still, I'lll "fix" it before CPO is up.

This is the noise mine makes while driving -- seems to happen between 5-25 mph... It also does the standard metallic sound when my car is first started. I will let the dealership know in 4000 miles when my service is due, and ofcourse report back.

This is the noise mine makes while driving -- seems to happen between 5-25 mph... It also does the standard metallic sound when my car is first started. I will let the dealership know in 4000 miles when my service is due, and ofcourse report back.

All that I am hearing is the common brake wear sensor squeal - nothing to do with the engine. When last were your disks/pads replaced?

Well my car started to make the ticking sound a few weeks ago so I took it to the BMW shop on Friday. I just picked it up yesterday and listened by the passenger front tire and no ticking sound. The shop did a good job and was quick, it was covered under warranty so all I had to pay was $50.

I am new to owning a BMW and unfamiliar with the sound of the motor.
After watching some you tube vids I am assuming that the motor does make a minor ticking like sound.

Can someone take a listen to the vid and tell me if this is a normal sounding motor?

This is a document distributed by the automaker to its authorized dealers, informing technicians of known problems and how to fix them -- for example, if a vehicle comes into the shop making a specific noise, the TSB tells the technician what is most likely causing the problem, which saves diagnostic time. The repair may be covered under the vehicle's warranty, depending on the problem and the vehicle's warranty coverage, but a TSB is not a warranty itself. Warranty Direct provides coverage for these issues. "

Just took mine back to the dealer today for my annual low mileage oil change and to have them look into my ongoing lifter noise issue.

I've already had the lifters and then the cylinder head replaced due to noisy lifters, yet the noise has persisted. I showed my SA several videos from the past few months demonstrating it. He's not sure what else they can do for me as the cylinder head was replaced about a year ago. It seemed to solve the problem for the first few months, but by the time winter came around the problem was back. I've only put around 7000 miles on the oil/new cylinder head and have always had oil changes annually at around the same interval.

I hate to say it but even the new cylinder head seems to still have the issue. We'll see what the mechanic finds and what course of action they suggest.

My BMW mechanic replaced my lifters many months back after I heard the same metallic ticking heard in the video below. The noise then went away. It eventually came back though. I don't hear it often, but it is the same metallic ticking sound I heard before my lifters were replaced.

The same BMW mechanic tells me I don't have to do anything about it this time around. He says there is no danger to my car because the sound comes from an air pocket (I don't drive much, so the mechanic says that makes the occurrence of an air pocket, and hence the sound, more likely). The mechanic says he can replace the lifters again, and if he does so, he'll also replace the rocker arms and give me a new valve cover gasket (he has never replaced either of those latter parts).

My car is no longer under warranty. The repair cost isn't prohibitive, but isn't dirt cheap either. Is this something I should definitely replace right away because it poses a danger to my car? And if I have these three things replaced, what is the confidence level that this issue will be finally resolved? Or, are these repairs unnecessary, assuming I can live with the intermittent ticking noise?

Thanks.

Quote:

Originally Posted by AddictedToBavarian

I've been putting it off. Has done it like 5 times in a little over 1 year of ownership. Supposedly doesn't affect the car. Still, I'lll "fix" it before CPO is up.

My BMW mechanic replaced my lifters many months back after I heard the same metallic ticking heard in the video below. The noise then went away. It eventually came back though. I don't hear it often, but it is the same metallic ticking sound I heard before my lifters were replaced.

The same BMW mechanic tells me I don't have to do anything about it this time around. He says there is no danger to my car because the sound comes from an air pocket (I don't drive much, so the mechanic says that makes the occurrence of an air pocket, and hence the sound, more likely). The mechanic says he can replace the lifters again, and if he does so, he'll also replace the rocker arms and give me a new valve cover gasket (he has never replaced either of those latter parts).

My car is no longer under warranty. The repair cost isn't prohibitive, but isn't dirt cheap either. Is this something I should definitely replace right away because it poses a danger to my car? And if I have these three things replaced, what is the confidence level that this issue will be finally resolved? Or, are these repairs unnecessary, assuming I can live with the intermittent ticking noise?

Thanks.

The only real fix if to replace the cylinder head. If you're out of warranty that means about $6,000. However, some people still have the same issue after. Not a lot, but some.